Greatest Comeback Stories in Gaming

Mibu no ookami

Mibu no ookami

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What's a publisher, developer, or series that you felt went to shit but made a remarkable return to form maybe even got better than they ever were before? What do you think turned them around?

The key here is they had to go significantly downhill first.

The only one I can think of off the top of my head is Capcom. I think it was around the lost planet era where Capcom was just a really garbage company. They were pushing out the word Resident Evil games. They had alienated Keiji Inafune and basically killed Mega Man. Street Fighter was flailing.

Monster Hunter World in 2018 may have been the turn around they needed. This was followed up by RE2 remake in 2019. Not only has Resident Evil returned as premier franchise but so has Street Fighter. I would love a documentary on how they've gotten back on track. Or is it just that the RE:Engine has been really good to them?

All that being said, Monster Hunter Rise has absolutely been thrashed by fans.
 
Don't mind me, I'm just reserving this spot for when the Dreamcast 2 is surprise launched.
 
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Hitman hit the skids in a big way to me

Hitman Absolution = Utter Dog Shit, thought it was the end of the series

Hitman 2016 = Back on form, Hitman 3 is just pure gold.
 
Most impressive and unexpected was No Man's Sky. Now I am not a fan of the game, but I really admire the way they went about addressing issues. They didn't whine, complain how fans didn't understand, or blame anyone. They stayed quiet and fixed things. Not only that but they have continued to support and transform their game how IMO GAAS should be done.
 
From Skyward Sword to Breath of the Wild...still mad amazed by the legendary comeback since the same team made both along with Tears! I loved Skyward but maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan the difference in reception from that to Breath has to be seen to be believed XD
 
Capcom is a good example. During PS360 era I was legit worried they'd go out of business considering how poor their games sold, and now they're taking in record profits while at the same time releasing some of the best games their respective franchise has ever seen. I think most of it boils down to them not trying so hard to cater to us westerners, and listening to the fans in what they want. RE engine has surely helped achieve this success, seeing how good and flexible the engine is. I remember Capcom being in quite the turmoil when their follow up engine to MT framework, Phanta Rei, shitting the bed and got replaced in what eventually would be RE engine. But I think the real turning point for Capcom came with Resident Evil 7. It was the start of something new, both for the franchise and for the company. The commercial and critical success of RE 7 was instrumental in Capcoms revitalization.
 
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Capcom's glow up is unreal. I couldn't be happier with RE2R, RE3R, RE4R, SF6

Any one of those games is a game of the decade for me.
 
Deus Ex Human Revolution. Series was basically in limbo after its dud release of Invisible War. Then HR came a couple generations later and knocked it out of the park.
 
The Nier Franchise.

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The first one went really unnoticed, with very few sales, but became a real critical acclaim over time.

It's a small miracle that we got a sequel.
 
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Dark Souls after how clunky and obscure Demons Souls was.
I know that NOW we all love demons souls but back then only few outlets realized it's potential
 
Resident Evil 7 was awesome, way WAY better than Village imo.
Sf6 is a great game too.

All companies have highs and lows!
 
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This moment right here.... Both a figurative and literal best comeback.

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This moment retroactively made Street Fighter III Third Strike one of the most respected games in the fighting game genre. Many think it's still unmatched. It also helped reinvigorate a love for the license itself. This clip started spreading like wildfire on the internet at just the right time to help usher in Street Fighter IV's blockbuster release. Which is good. Street Fighter was falling into relative obscurity with all but the most ardent fans. Lastly, it gave EVO a much wider audience.

Honestly, the importance of this moment and the comeback it afforded Street Fighter cannot be overstated.
 
Valve managing to somehow turn Counter-Strike: Global Offensive around from an incredibly failed launch. Kinda hard to imagine now seeing it easily peaking above 1 million daily players online that there was a time when it only had like 20k players online for a year or two. Unfortunately it has become by far the most predatorily monetized game in the industry.
 
Dr.Morris79 said:
Hitman hit the skids in a big way to me

Hitman Absolution = Utter Dog Shit, thought it was the end of the series

Hitman 2016 = Back on form, Hitman 3 is just pure gold.
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100% this for me as well, Absolution convinced me the series was dead. Considering that you could even straight up play certain sections as a straight up action game and get Silent Assassin it just decided to go 180 on everything that made Hitman, Hitman
 
Capcom's Resident Evil 4 is an interesting case. It went from development hell, which started in 1999, to the 2005 GOTY for many.

P.S. Parry in Third Strike is broken and the horrible "EVO Moment 37" is a prime example of how badly it can alter the flow of a match. It should be a point of ridicule with regards to the game but is ironically considered a highlight of fighting games. It's a f@%#ing joke.
 
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GhostNTheBashShell said:
100% this for me as well, Absolution convinced me the series was dead. Considering that you could even straight up play certain sections as a straight up action game and get Silent Assassin it just decided to go 180 on everything that made Hitman, Hitman
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I remember rushing out at midnight to my local Asda like an excited school kid, coming from all the previous games it had to be done.. got home, the servers were borked. Okay, i'll play it in the morning, had a few hours and straight back to Asda it went. I was mortified :messenger_tears_of_joy:
 
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Xbox One hardware.
No Man Sky
Madden - Being completely overshadowed by a lesser competitor's rookie debut, NFL2K. Ea was eventually able to buy exclusive the NFL license which assured that they would always make the best NFL licensed game for that year going forward.
 
Xenon said:
Madden - Being completely overshadowed by a lesser competitor's rookie debut, NFL2K. Ea was eventually able to buy exclusive the NFL license which assured that they would always make the best NFL licensed game for that year going forward.
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Not sure that's the comeback story you think it is.

Also, they weren't rookies. They are actually the ones who developed Madden 94-95 and NHL95,97.

They made an NBA and college football game as well.
 
FromSoftware

I mean Demon's Souls was a "fuck it let him try I guess" move from what I understand. The guy single-handedly ended up turning them from bargain bin dredgers into a highly influential powerhouse.

What a Chad.
 
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Devil May Cry after the second game.

Resident Evil after RE 5 and 6.

Doom after the identity crisis of the third installment.

FROM Software as a whole, considering they were mostly mid-tier developer before Miyazaki joined.
 
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Gotta be Capcom. Just like a decade or so ago everyone was calling them Crapcom then RE7 seemed to turn it all around for them
 
Loomy said:
Let's wait for it to come out first
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we dont need to wait, the support that CDPR gave to this game is already a story of comeback, a lot of developers at this point would have already abandoned their game, look at Fallout 76, Anthem, BF 2042 as examples.
 
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